Chemical giant's lobbyists woo MEPs via online wine tasting, just as the battle over pesticides reduction proposed by the European Green Deal heats up. But does this event comply with existing rules on lobbying gifts and events targeting MEPs?

A detailed summary of the findings and conclusions of two extensive reports on research public-private partnerships in the EU: the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) and the Bio-Based Industries (BBI) Joint Undertakings.

Despite strong calls from MEPs and the public, ExxonMobil and its lobby groups mobilise enough behind-the-scenes pressure to stop the European Parliament taking away its lobby badges

In this new episode we dive into the incredible story on how Fortress Europe is being constructed by an European agency called the ‘European Border and Coast Guard Agency’ AKA Frontex, almost in the dark and without any democratic oversight. With billions of EU tax payer’s money and the help of dozens of lobbyists from defence, arms and surveillance technology industries, Frontex is creating a world that George Orwell would have found inspiring when writing his book ‘1984’.

Today is the EU Commission's deadline for responding to the EU Ombudsman’s inquiry into the lack of transparency and accountability around the EU’s Covid19 vaccine negotiations with Big Pharma. In addition to drawing conclusions on the counter-productive secrecy, the inquiry will hopefully result in large numbers of internal documents being disclosed.

In this first new episode of 2021, we dive into the topic that is unfortunately still on everyone's mind each and every day: the raging pandemic. Our main focus is why were /are health care systems in many countries under such pressure when dealing with Covid-19?

The massive expansion of the budget, personnel, and powers of the EU's border agency Frontex has also seen increasingly privileged access for industry. This perpetuates a vision of border control based on more and more firearms and biometric surveillance that has major human rights implications.

From hospitals to care homes, the outsourcing and privatisation of healthcare, in combination with various austerity policies, have significantly degraded EU member states’ capacity to deal effectively with COVID-19, costing extra lives. A new report by lobby watchdog Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) published today shows that neoliberal reforms that weakened public healthcare systems were in part the result of EU policy pressures [1].

From hospitals to care homes, the evidence is mounting that outsourcing and private provision of healthcare has significantly degraded EU member states’ capacity to deal effectively with COVID-19. The EU must reject the private sector lobbyists now whispering in its ear, and put public provision at the centre of its strategy.